Showing kindness to strangers

Do you remember the scene in “A Streetcar Named Desire” when Blanch says, “I've always depended on the kindness of strangers?” If you are familiar with the story, you know that it didn't really work out for her. I'd like to think that fictional dramatic scene is just a movie, not a reflection of real life.

Who am I kidding? In the news industry, witnessing man's inhumanity is a daily occurrence.

Last week the rains flooded the streets and neighborhoods of Hampton Roads, creating danger and peril in its wake. It's interesting to note that it brought out the best and the worst in people.

Two situations occurred during the week of rain and flooding that proved both uplifting and disappointing.

What would you do if you saw a woman in a wheelchair in the pouring rain? My friend Tina Luque did what I would like to think most people would do. She got out of her car on 21st Street in Norfolk and asked the woman in the wheelchair where she needed to go. The woman was confused but told her a medical transport van had just dropped her off there at her request. Turns out she was scheduled for a dialysis treatment but couldn't remember where the testing center was. Tina saw a medical transport van on the next corner and wheeled the woman to the vehicle. Basically, the driver told Tina, the woman in the wheelchair was not her patient and not her problem. My friend Tina, who left her cell phone in her car, asked if the driver could make a call and find out where the nearest dialysis facility was located. The driver ignored her request and drove away.

As Tina told me the story, I visualized what that must have been like, asking for a little help and the disappointment of seeing someone capable of giving aid turn their back. Who does that?

Tina watched the medical transport van drive away, leaving them both in the driving rain. She wheeled the confused woman into the Rite Aid drug store down the street. She asked the pharmacist where the nearest dialysis center was located. Finally, a kind stranger at the drug store named Craig cared enough to not only get the information, but also volunteered to accompany Tina and the woman in the wheelchair to the dialysis center located a half block away.

It's been my experience that for every indifferent human being, there is a person who yearns to make a difference.

Case in point: a hammer and a hero in Hampton.

The rains came fast and furious near Mallory Elementary School last Tuesday. A couple driving a SUV made a wrong turn in the quickly-rising water and drove into a creek. The vehicle was sinking like a rock when Jesie Joyner heard cries for help. Two girls in the neighborhood saw what happened and were yelling for help. Jesie didn't think about his safety; he didn't question the moment. He sprang into action.

Jesie quickly assessed he would need to break the window to get them out. The couple couldn't open the doors to the SUV. Jesie shouted for his daughter to go into the house and get a hammer. He could see the couple pounding on the rear window; they were running out of air as water filled the interior.

Jesie swam over to the partially submerged SUV and broke out the window, freeing the couple who would have surely drowned had it not been for the kindness of a stranger.

The couple climbed out of the SUV, grateful to be alive. When interviewed, Jesie said he was the one who felt blessed that he was able to free them from what could have been a watery grave. Jesie, who works as a custodian at Phillips Elementary School, is a humble hero. He said he was just doing what the good Lord expected him to do.

Imagine that, the rescuer feeling grateful for the opportunity to assist his fellow man.

I'm not sure what separates those of us who do the right thing when no one is looking and those of us who opt to look away when a helping hand is needed, but these two situations in one week did compel me to share the events with readers as food for thought.

In an era when people routinely ask “What would Jesus do?” how many of us really practice what is preached? How many of us go the extra mile just because it's the right thing to do? If you really embrace the idea that we should treat others as we would like to be treated, test yourself the next time you're in the position to lend a hand. Will you be that person who is too busy, thinking the next person will take care of it? Let's take a minute to hold a mirror up to our behavior. The question is will you be happy with the reflection you see.

Ciara is a news anchor at WTKR NewsChannel 3. Her column runs on the first Monday of the month. She can be reached at Barbara.Ciara@wtkr.com or at 446-1344.